General Kael
General Kael was the leader of the Kaelithicans when they escaped their titan masters and invaded the continent of Xepher . He lead the humans in conquest, dominating the elves, orcs, dwarves, and other races of the continent. His people enslaved or helped the local races (depending on point of view). He is the hero of mankind and the hated of elves. The Epic of Kael acts as a holy book to his worshipers and it depicts his rise to power and the events of the Ascension War. Kael the Saint Kael liberated the humans from the evil clutches of slavery by their old masters, the titans. for countless generations mankind lived in fear. Legends, myths, and hope spoke of a man that would one day free them and take them to the promised land. The Savior of Mankind, General Kael, was just that man. Legend says that Kael was a mighty warrior who slew the champion of the titans in single combat and liberated the human race. He led them to the eastern shores of Xepher and founded Zegima, the capitol of his empire. When they arrived they were met with hostility by the elves of the area. They were unwilling to share their land with a lost people with no home. They had no mercy and cared nothing for mankind. They attacked from the woods and slew humans by the hundreds. Kael was not about to exchange one tyrant race for another and moblized his people into fighting units. Smiths forged titansteel into weapons their enemies had never seen. Their superior steel and desperation let the first humans to victory over the elves. Years past and the armies grew. Elves could not keep up with the reproductive capabilities of humans and when coupled with the vast number of elves slain by the humans, the power of the human war machine began to grow. Kael led his people into battle whenever he could and showed them he was mighty and did not fear their enemies. The armies of men pushed back the self righteous elves into their inner sanctum of Avalon and eventually forced them to retreat into the sky. Kael was supposedly slain on the battlefield in the last battle, but rumors persist that he lived on, leaving to fight against mankind's enemies elsewhere. Some even deify him saying he ascended to godhood. K'esh the Devil Kael believed humans had a right to take what they could. This ideology continues through human nations today and was most prominent in the First and Second Klindathu Empires. With this, they conquered, enslaved, and murdered countless others, but the most hard hit were the elves. For these crimes they called him K'esh, the devil. Elves have long life spans and it has only been a few generations since the Kaelithicans first landed on the shores of Zegima. While most elves understand that the humans alive now had nothing to do with the first early Kaelithicans, some racism still exists to a degree. At the very least, the disdain for Kael still runs rampant, even if it is only limited to the man. On occasion, shrines to Kael are vandalized or destroyed as extremists fight to remove Kael from his praise and pseudo worship. When the first Kaelithicans arrived, they were an invading force. An entire army of humans landed in elven lands and laid claim to it like they had always been there. They attacked the elves and war began. for fifty years the battles raged, humans warred against anyone and everyone and, as if possessed by divine might, they slowly pushed out. Eventually, elves and dwarves banded together but by then it was too late. The Kaelithicans enslaved elves, or worse, converted them to the human cause, forcing them to work as house servants, farm hands, metal workers,and any other task they could force upon the elves. For as long as anyone could remember, elves lived in peace and dominated the area. The Kaelithicans single handedly destroyed the elven empire, and at the final battle of Elithia Pass at the border of Inner Avalon, the elves made the choice to raise Avalon into the air. It was durring this battle that Kael was slain. Unfortunately, every last elf left behind was killed. None were spared by the onslaught of the Kaelithican army. Due to his relentless pursuit of elven lives, the Avalonian elves view Kael as the Man-Devil. To them he is a mass murderer and tyrant. Praise of him is praise against the elves. The Heirs, Cult of Kael The Cult of Kael was predominant in the First Klindathan Empire as they still believed Kael to be the Savior of Mankind, banisher of the elves, and slayer of titans. He was a head figure in their religion. After the fall of Klindathu at the beginning of the Age of Darkness , the Cult of Kael saw a drastic decline in numbers, as did the human population as a whole. This marked the beginning of the end for the cult. After The Conjunction, other humans sprouted up around the continent who knew nothing of Kael. The idea that there was a hero for all humans was gone. The cult went underground and was shunned in all but the most dominantly Kaelithican areas. Praise of him can still be found in these areas, but the Second Empire of Klindathu did not hold him up as much as the first empire did. The cult now call themselves The Heirs as they believe they are the only humans that should rightfully rule the land and they are the true heirs to Klindathu and the Kaelithican nations. They speak in silence about reuniting the whole of the continent under one banner once again and all races, man, elves, gnome, dwarf, live under the rule of humanity. In recent years the cult has seen a rise as the new empire of Kaelithica has taken power. They are lead by a king who claims direct lineage to General Kael and the clergy of the Heirs claims to confirm it. For now, in the lands surounding Zegima, the original capitol of the nation of Kael, his worship grows again. Kahlae the Destroyer The smallest of the cults of Kael is the Cult of Kahlae the Destroyer. Filled with a mix of races ranging from elf, dwarf, and gnome to orcs, giants, and goblins. Many races have records of the destruction Kael brought to the lands. He brought slavery and death for all those that would not follow him. Because of this, some non-humans began to revere and eventually worship him as a deity of destruction. They bring death to those who would not follow Kahlae. They live under a tyrannical elf leader, Biisha Covili, who teaches that Kahlae will bless all who follow him. They are a warrior cult dedicated to the eradication of all who would not follow Kahlae.